Skip to main content

Mental Health Update

May 31, 2019
Mental Health Update

MH Update – 5/31/19 – New PSAs Launched to Increase Number of Mental Health Professionals


MHANYS has spent a lot of time focusing on workforce in recent years. Among the many issues we face is lack of mental health professionals in the field including the fact that there are no psychiatrists in over half the counties in the United States.

The unmet need for mental health services cries out for reform. MHANYS is pleased to be part of the campaign to help respond to this crisis. Bring Change to Mind and our colleagues at the Patrick Lee Foundation have created a series of PSA’s led by Bring Change to Mind Co-Founder Glenn Close.

We urge you to link to www.mentalhealthjobs.org to find out  more information and to share the compelling data.

Bring Change to Mind and Patrick P. Lee Foundation Launch PSA to Increase Number of Mental Health Professionals in the U.S.

New Campaign to Build a Pipeline of Professionals to support Mental Health Care as 56% of Americans with Mental Illness Currently Receive No Treatment

San Francisco, CA – May 28, 2019 – Today, leading mental health and education advocacy organizations Bring Change to Mind and the Patrick P. Lee Foundation release a new advocacy and awareness campaign, Between The Lines. This campaign aims to increase the number of psychiatrists, psychologists, and behavioral health practitioners serving the growing needs of diverse communities throughout the United States.

The latest State of Mental Health in America report[1] highlighted that mental illness affects approximately one in five Americans every year. While those people may be reaching out to their primary care physicians for help, with not enough mental health professionals available, two-thirds of physicians have reported difficulty in referring patients for further mental health treatment – twice the number for any other specialty. In fact, 56% of Americans with mental illness have no access to treatment, with zero psychiatrists in more than half of U.S. counties. Youth mental health is particularly ill-supported with the report indicating that 76% of youths with serious depression receive no or insufficient treatment.

The goal of Between the Lines is to encourage college students who are in health, science, and/or education tracks to choose career paths that serve the growing mental health needs in the U.S. The campaign will spotlight individuals who have dedicated their careers to save, and better the lives of others; provide awareness around the breadth of professions in the field; connect students to associations serving these specialists; and share resources that can help with educational opportunities, scholarships, and loan repayment. Through targeted digital media placement promotion, the campaign aims to reach millions of college students and increase the number of mental health professionals.

“Mental illness is something that will affect nearly everyone in the U.S., whether it’s the individual themselves or their loved ones,” said Pamela Harrington, Executive Director, Bring Change to Mind. “Bring Change to Mind has dedicated itself to reducing the stigma around mental illness; from our high-profile public service announcements with our Co-Founder Glenn Close, to our high school club program which empowers students to feel comfortable talking about these topics. While we continue to normalize conversations around mental health and work to increase help-seeking behavior, we must also foster a future workforce of behavioral health professionals to alleviate the growing need for care.”

“When Bring Change to Mind approached us about a collaboration to address the critical shortage of mental health professionals, we were very interested,” said Jane Mogavero, Executive Director of the Patrick P. Lee Foundation. “One of the Lee Foundation’s top priorities is to support a strong, well-trained mental health workforce. This campaign is a natural extension of our mental health scholarship program and allows us to communicate directly with college students, who may aspire to a career in mental health. By adding just one mental health professional to the workforce, hundreds of patients and their families will benefit. There is great opportunity for dedicated individuals to impact their communities in a substantial way.”

For more details, and to view the campaign, please visit: www.mentalhealthjobs.org

This campaign was developed by the Lee Foundation and Bring Change To Mind with support from Water Cooler Group, The Mighty, Active Minds and Mental Health Association in New York State, Inc.

For more information, please contact:

Laura Macdonald
Bring Change to Mind Advisory Board
laura.macdonald@hotwireglobal.com | +1 415 691 1735

About Bring Change to Mind
Bring Change to Mind is a nonprofit organization dedicated to encouraging dialogue about mental health, and to raising awareness, understanding, and empathy. Actor and advocate Glenn Close co-founded Bring Change to Mind in 2010 after her sister, Jessie Close, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and her nephew, Calen Pick, with schizoaffective disorder.

For more, please visit: www.bringchange2mind.org

About the Patrick P. Lee Foundation
The Patrick P. Lee Foundation is a family foundation with two core funding areas – Education and Mental Health. The Foundation’s primary investments in education are through its scholarship programs in science, technology, engineering, and math. In mental health, the Foundation’s investments focus on strengthening the mental health workforce, supporting community programs and services, advocating for increased public funding, and building the mental health literacy of the community.

For more, please visit: www.lee.foundation

[1] https://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/issues/state-mental-health-america-2018